ddh33
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I thought that was a pretty impressive display by the Cowboys tonight. I would imagine that everyone associated with the Cowboys would have to feel like they did what needed to be done. They'll still have some things to sort out, but the team looked good.
I do think Wade Phillips needs to be getting more credit than he has been getting. I was, and still am, a big Bill Parcells fan. I think Bill did some great things for this franchise, and I'm afraid he's actually under-appreciated by many. But like everyone has talked about at length, Wade Phillips has definitely brought a different energy and outlook to this team. I think it's helped a lot of these players. But more than that, this team has played very clean football in the first two preseason games. That's pretty unusual, but this team seems energetic, aggressive, and still disciplined.
The scheming of the coaches has been pretty impressive to me too. I know that the preseason isn't where you scheme people to death, and I know there is plenty of talent here too. But there were a lot of plays I saw where Romo was able to go through his progressions and find open people. The design of some of those plays was pretty. I just didn't see how Denver could cover all of those guys and still stop the run. There were backs in the backfield, receivers attacking vertically, TEs getting into the middle of the field. And if you covered all that, here came Patrick Crayton into the middle of the field for an easy catch with plenty of room to run.
Considering how Denver has one of the best pairs of corners in the league and Dallas was playing with their twos most of the night, the performance of the offense was even better than a lot of people might think.
The running game looks great. Julius looks quick and decisive, and Marion Barber just keeps surpassing my expectations. That guy is a beast.
Funny note: while many of the defensive players look slimmer, several of the offensive players look bigger and more muscled up than ever.
The lines - both of them - look better than recent Dallas lines. The offensive line is pretty imposing with their size. To this point, Leonard Davis has been a big addition, no pun intended. That guy really gets things moving on the interior of that line. I think the young tackles should get some credit too. I don't remember Marten getting his name called, so that's a plus. McQuistan looked awfully good to me. I thought he had several nice moments.
The defensive line did a good job of creating pressure, although there were some blitzes. I thought they did a very good job of controlling the running game though.
Kevin Burnett really flashed tonight. He seemed to be everywhere and vying for more playing time.
I like the physical tools that Spencer has. Yeah, he still needs to learn the game a bit better, but it's coming. Meanwhile, he's still going to be someone who makes the offense account for him. That's something this team has needed.
I think the Cowboys have some interesting decisions about those last couple of DB spots. They all have some pros and cons, which is to be expected that far down the depth chart.
Nick Folk and Gramatica both seem to be doing a fine job too. Folk was a star tonight with his big 50 plus yard field goal. I keep saying that if this competition stays close, the young kid will get the nod. I'm sticking with that.
As far as the big picture is concerned, at least no one seemed to be injured from Dallas' side. The Broncos may not have been so fortunate, however. I hope their guys are all right.
The rest of the big picture goes back to roster concerns.
At this point, I see the 53 going something like this...
QB - Romo and Johnson. Still don't think they keep 3.
RB - Jones, Barber, Thompson.
FB - Hoyte and Anderson.
WR - Owens, Glenn, Crayton, Hurd, Austin, and Stanback. Stanback showed something tonight.
TE - Witten, Fasano, and Curtis. I wish Curtis was a little more physical, but he still has better tools than Bergen, and Bergen committed several penalties tonight.
OL - Adams, Kosier, Gurode, Davis, Colombo, McQuistan, Procter, Free, Marten.
DL - Ferguson, Spears, Canty, Hatcher, Ratliff, Ayodele.
LB - Ware, Ayodele, James, Ellis, Spencer, Burnett, Carpenter, Glymph.
CB - Newman, Henry, Glenn, Reeves, ?, ?
S - Williams, Hamlin, Watkins, Davis.
LS - Ladouceur.
P - McBriar.
K - Folk.
By my count, that gives you 3 special teamers, 25 offensive players, and 24 defensive players. So your last roster spot goes to the guy who helps you msot. Maybe it's the veteran kicker, an 11th DB (since I think they somehow keep 10), a 9th LB, or a 7th DL.
After that, I think you could almost even pick the 8 who end up on the practice squad.
I'm betting you keep your third QB there, a RB (Coleman?), A WR (Jefferson?), Hannah (who it feels like they are hiding), an interior offensive lineman, a versatile defensive lineman, Obomose (who might have been hiding tonight too), and a raw DB (maybe one of your rookies you think you can get through waivers).
I do think Wade Phillips needs to be getting more credit than he has been getting. I was, and still am, a big Bill Parcells fan. I think Bill did some great things for this franchise, and I'm afraid he's actually under-appreciated by many. But like everyone has talked about at length, Wade Phillips has definitely brought a different energy and outlook to this team. I think it's helped a lot of these players. But more than that, this team has played very clean football in the first two preseason games. That's pretty unusual, but this team seems energetic, aggressive, and still disciplined.
The scheming of the coaches has been pretty impressive to me too. I know that the preseason isn't where you scheme people to death, and I know there is plenty of talent here too. But there were a lot of plays I saw where Romo was able to go through his progressions and find open people. The design of some of those plays was pretty. I just didn't see how Denver could cover all of those guys and still stop the run. There were backs in the backfield, receivers attacking vertically, TEs getting into the middle of the field. And if you covered all that, here came Patrick Crayton into the middle of the field for an easy catch with plenty of room to run.
Considering how Denver has one of the best pairs of corners in the league and Dallas was playing with their twos most of the night, the performance of the offense was even better than a lot of people might think.
The running game looks great. Julius looks quick and decisive, and Marion Barber just keeps surpassing my expectations. That guy is a beast.
Funny note: while many of the defensive players look slimmer, several of the offensive players look bigger and more muscled up than ever.
The lines - both of them - look better than recent Dallas lines. The offensive line is pretty imposing with their size. To this point, Leonard Davis has been a big addition, no pun intended. That guy really gets things moving on the interior of that line. I think the young tackles should get some credit too. I don't remember Marten getting his name called, so that's a plus. McQuistan looked awfully good to me. I thought he had several nice moments.
The defensive line did a good job of creating pressure, although there were some blitzes. I thought they did a very good job of controlling the running game though.
Kevin Burnett really flashed tonight. He seemed to be everywhere and vying for more playing time.
I like the physical tools that Spencer has. Yeah, he still needs to learn the game a bit better, but it's coming. Meanwhile, he's still going to be someone who makes the offense account for him. That's something this team has needed.
I think the Cowboys have some interesting decisions about those last couple of DB spots. They all have some pros and cons, which is to be expected that far down the depth chart.
Nick Folk and Gramatica both seem to be doing a fine job too. Folk was a star tonight with his big 50 plus yard field goal. I keep saying that if this competition stays close, the young kid will get the nod. I'm sticking with that.
As far as the big picture is concerned, at least no one seemed to be injured from Dallas' side. The Broncos may not have been so fortunate, however. I hope their guys are all right.
The rest of the big picture goes back to roster concerns.
At this point, I see the 53 going something like this...
QB - Romo and Johnson. Still don't think they keep 3.
RB - Jones, Barber, Thompson.
FB - Hoyte and Anderson.
WR - Owens, Glenn, Crayton, Hurd, Austin, and Stanback. Stanback showed something tonight.
TE - Witten, Fasano, and Curtis. I wish Curtis was a little more physical, but he still has better tools than Bergen, and Bergen committed several penalties tonight.
OL - Adams, Kosier, Gurode, Davis, Colombo, McQuistan, Procter, Free, Marten.
DL - Ferguson, Spears, Canty, Hatcher, Ratliff, Ayodele.
LB - Ware, Ayodele, James, Ellis, Spencer, Burnett, Carpenter, Glymph.
CB - Newman, Henry, Glenn, Reeves, ?, ?
S - Williams, Hamlin, Watkins, Davis.
LS - Ladouceur.
P - McBriar.
K - Folk.
By my count, that gives you 3 special teamers, 25 offensive players, and 24 defensive players. So your last roster spot goes to the guy who helps you msot. Maybe it's the veteran kicker, an 11th DB (since I think they somehow keep 10), a 9th LB, or a 7th DL.
After that, I think you could almost even pick the 8 who end up on the practice squad.
I'm betting you keep your third QB there, a RB (Coleman?), A WR (Jefferson?), Hannah (who it feels like they are hiding), an interior offensive lineman, a versatile defensive lineman, Obomose (who might have been hiding tonight too), and a raw DB (maybe one of your rookies you think you can get through waivers).
